Men aren't from Mars, but ex-astronaut David Leestma says we'll soon land there

Press Photo/T.J. HamiltonBlast off: David Leestma, a retired astronaut and veteran of three space shuttle flights, talks about his missions Wednesday at the Grand Rapids Public Museum.

GRAND RAPIDS -- The first time West Michigan native David Leestma looked out of the window of space shuttle Challenger and saw the Earth below, he thought, "Wow, that's a long fall."

Leestma, a former astronaut and veteran of three shuttle flights during the 1980s and '90s, on Wednesday shared his perspective on what it is like to be in space and what the future looks like for the U.S. space program. Since serving as capsule communicator on the space shuttle, Leestma -- who was born in Muskegon and schooled in Grand Rapids -- now serves as manager of the advanced planning office at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

"The thing about the space program is that it takes a long time, and sometimes we forget that," Leestma said during his speech at the Grand Rapids Public Museum. "We want that instant gratification and forget things are going to take awhile."

Planning is under way for a manned trip to Mars, although much of the technology needed to get there has not been developed. That's one of the reasons it is so important to go back to the moon, Leestma told the gathering.

"Going to Mars is a giant step," he said. "It takes six months to get there and, when you get there, you have to wait six months for the planets to realign so you can get back.

"We don't know yet if we have the know-how to go to Mars," he added "We can learn a lot by going back to the moon."

He offered a brief glimpse of what NASA is calling the Constellation Program, which will replace the current shuttle fleet with Ares rockets for delivering payloads greater distances into space and the Orion capsule, which will replace the current shuttle fleet. The first Ares rocket test is set for April 2009.

The program includes a new lunar lander capable of carrying 20 tons of cargo to the moon, including habitats and possible plans for manned outposts on the moon, likely near its south pole where there's 80 percent sunlight and much less drastic temperature changes, Leestma said.